Friday, 3 March 2017

GOYA ~ HARVESTER OF BONGLOADS ...... review

Phoenix Arizona'sGoya emerge from the "Valley of the Sun" once again to assail our senses with four slices of monolithic groove delivered under the mighty banner of "Harvester of Bongloads" (Opoponax Records)

"Harvester of Bongloads" begins with that old chestnut of the 70's a conceptual piece, a twenty minute plus opus that lyrically pays homage to the "sweetest leaf" as well as lamenting the state of the world we live in, and is entitled "Omen". Split into three movements, " Strange Geometry", "Fade Away" and "Life Disintegrates", "Omen" shifts through a series of differing dynamics from tribalistic drums and backward sounding vocal effects through guitar wailing jamming to a full on monolithic, riff laden sludge/stoner doom finale Nick Lose (drums) lays down tumultuous barrages of rhythmic thunder superbly complimented by Sonny DeCarto's big gnarly overdriven bass lines, the pair laying the perfect foundations for Jeff Owens to build his fuzz drenched riffs and solo's over as well as adding his deep powerfully booming and slightly monotonic vocals to.
"Germination" follows and is a short yet totally enjoyable slab of plodding doom coated in scorching guitar that descends into white noise and feedback before re-emerging as.....
"Misanthropy On High" is Goya doing what Goya does best, laying down thick grooves of devastating sludge tinted doom around lyrical diatribes against humankind. Owens delivers a superb vocal performance over DeCanto and Lose's backdrop of thrumming bass and pulverising percussion, at the same time tearing scintillating and molten hot riffs, licks and solo's from his fretboard. The three musicians come together like pieces of a jigsaw complimenting each others contributions and combining to create a whole that is as heavy as it is addictive.
"Disease" sees Goya paying homage to their Sabbathian roots with the trio raising the tempo slightly and hitting a groove that although owing a large debt to Ozzy and Co. also carries within its deeply dark hard rock grooves a touch of North Dakota stoners Egypt's sonic assault.

"Harvester of Bongloads" is an album of superb new grooves and in Desert Psychlist's considered opinion is Goya's finest hour to date
Check it out .....

About Me

My name is Frazer (FDJ/Stonerking) and I am sole writer for stoner/doom and psych blog DESERT PSYCHLIST. I am not schooled in journalism, have no degrees and have very little knowledge of English grammer in fact I have no certificates of any description! The truth is I spent most of my formative school years not actually being there preferring instead to following bands around, going to gigs and travelling around the country to see my local football (soccer) team.

The reviews I write here are never going to be grammatically correct with punctuation in all the right places and nor will they be thought provoking and deep, sometimes they will not even make much sense to anyone other than myself but what they will be is from the heart. I want you the reader to feel the music that I love, share in my discoveries and in my disappointments and generally help me to promote the bands and the music that means so much to me. If you find something among these pages and posts that you like then follow the links and spend a few pennies supporting the artist. Lets give a little something back to those that give us so much.